A Push in the Right Direction
by psycochick32
Summary: Trini Kwan is used to having things a certain way. Jason is willing to give her a push in the right direction when it seems she won't leave that comfort zone...  Trini/Kat


A Push in the Right Direction

Written for Lady Griddlebone; a giftfic for the Alpha's Magical fic exchange. Hope you had a great holidays!

* * *

><p>Trini was not, absolutely not, planning on falling in love at the first Power Rangers reunion. After all, she wasn't really a love-on-first-sight kind of person. Even if she had been, she was far too busy helping teleport Billy back for the day, keeping Kim from having a nervous breakdown, keeping Jason from being all Angry First Red Ranger on Andros, and trying to get to the root of Karone's issues.<p>

She took a moment to thank the Powers That Be for Zack. Zack could be ridiculous and over-the-top, but she rarely had to pull him out of trouble of his own making.

"Trini!"

The first Yellow Ranger tilted her head back with a sigh and prayed for patience. Kim had been hollering for her all day long - waking her up early, even, to help decorate the house - and she could only imagine what minor tragedy had befallen her now.

"In the kitchen!" She gave the cake mix one last stir before looking up. "What do you…" She trailed off, quickly averting her gaze when she realized she was staring at the tall, _gorgeous_ blonde standing behind Kim, looking around with a smile.

After a moment, she squeezed between Kim and the wall, and walked over with arms open. "You must be Trini! Kim's told me all about you."

"Only the good things, I hope," Trini forced herself to joke, giving herself into the hug with far more feeling than she had expected. The woman was wearing pink, so she could only be one of two people...

"Tri, you _are_ only good things," Kim teased. "This is Kat, the one I gave my Power Coin to. She was Pink Zeo and the first Pink Turbo."

"I have so much I want to ask you," Kat gushed. "Billy was always going on about how great you were in the Command Center and how helpful you are." Trini's heart sunk a bit - another person in need? It figured. Then Kat added, "But it looks like you're a bit overwhelmed here. What can I do to help?"

The skies opened up and the angels sang.

"I'll leave you two alone," Kim said, winking at Trini from where Kat couldn't see. "Have fun!"

* * *

><p>"So... you and Kat, huh?"<p>

Trini tilted her head back to meet Jason's knowing grin, and rolled her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, come on. You've been staring all day."

"You're seeing things, and you're starting to sound like Kim."

Jason clutched his chest playfully. "You wound me."

"I'll wound you, alright." Jason's expression filled her with a sense of foreboding. He was _planning_. "Leave it alone, Jase."

He motioned to where the blonde was chatting animatedly with Kimberly. "You like her; don't try to fool me. She's going to school in London, you know."

"She told me," Trini responded. "I was giving her some suggestions and tips." She and Jason were attending Regent's American College London on scholarships offered through the Peace Conference.

"We should make plans to meet up."

She eyed him suspiciously. His innocent expression wasn't convincing; she'd seen it far too many times just before he ran off to do something stupid. "Yeah. It'll be nice to have a _friend_ nearby," she stressed.

Jason simply smiled.

* * *

><p>"Are you <em>sure<em> you don't want to go?"

Trini looked up from her homework, letting an exasperated sigh slip out. "Jason, Katherine is perfectly capable of getting to her dorm from the airport. It's not even all that far."

"But wouldn't it be nice of us to meet her there? I'm sure she'd really appreciate seeing a friendly face right after landing."

Trini shook her head, "She'll probably want to sleep. It's a long flight, and she told me she has problems sleeping on planes."

Jason tilted his head, suddenly looking far more interested than he should be. "You've been talking to her?"

She shifted, wondering why she felt uncomfortable admitting that, "Yeah, we've called. A couple times." Actually, it'd become a weekly thing, though she wasn't quite sure how. There was just something about Kat that made her want to talk about all the things she kept bottled up inside... frustrations, irritations, the little things. Maybe it was because they hadn't served on the same teams, but Kat didn't seem to _need_ her the same way the others did.

"A couple times, huh?"

Trini knew what he was thinking, and shook her head. "It's not like that. Come on. You know I'm not in the market for a relationship right now. I have a heavy class-load, and after everything that happened with Julia, maybe it's better-"

"You wouldn't be keeping secrets from Kat," Jason pointed out. "You can talk to her about Ranger stuff since she was one, too. And Kat's less high-maintenance."

Trini pursed her lips. Jason was like a terrier when he seized an idea. Then again, a lot of Rangers were... they had an annoying tendency to never give up. "She's dating Tommy, anyway."

He blinked. "No, they broke up about... two months ago. You didn't know?"

"No." She was a bit blown away by the revelation. Kat hadn't really mentioned Tommy much in their conversations, but Trini figured she was just a bit more private than Kim when it came to relationships. She certainly hadn't mourned like Kim had. But wait, what if she had, and Trini hadn't known? She suddenly felt guilty... and below that, an unsettling feeling of _hope_.

"C'mon," he wheedled. "Her plane will be here in two hours. It'll be fun."

Trini sighed and nodded. "Alright… let's get going."

* * *

><p>It soon became apparent that Jason had no intentions to leave Trini to her own devices. Weekends where he didn't have a suggestion for an outing or gathering of some sort were rare. Recently, he'd begun to flake out on them…<p>

The two women sat across from each other in the French restaurant, both smiling. "So, he really said he had other things to do?"

"Yeah," Trini laughed. "Didn't even bother coming up with an excuse this time. I think he's tired of me catching him making stuff up."

"Clearly he never learned not to lie to one of the girls," Kat giggled.

Trini took a moment to ogle – rather, _appreciate_ the lovely vision Kat made before her. The blonde had dressed up that day, wearing just a touch of make-up and having taken the time to curl the hair she was growing out again. She often found herself caught admiring Katherine's grace… the way her eyes sparkled when she laughed… the way she was self-assured, but not haughty.

"You in there, Tri?"

Kat's concerned gaze cut through Trini's thoughts, and she blushed at being caught staring. "Yeah… sorry. Just thinking."

"About what?"

'_About you.'_ That was another thing she found she liked about Katherine; so different from her ex-girlfriend, and from her high school friends, Katherine always seemed to be more worried about the people around her. Not that Trini's fellow Rangers were selfish, but they always turned to Trini for help.

Trini often wondered what they'd do without her.

And she found herself wondering more often what she'd do without Kat.

"Trini?"

"Sorry!" She was making a fool of herself, that was for sure. Jason's commentary – occasionally quite lewd – must have been getting into her brain. Stupid Red Rangers. "What were you saying?"

"I suggested we go for a walk. Maybe you can clear your head a bit," she teased lightly.

Trini agreed and gathered her purse, letting Kat pay this time around. They'd long gotten over the intricacies of splitting bills, preferring to take turns. It had become rather… date-like, actually.

The feeling lingered as they made their way to a nearby park, making small talk. Kat had spoken with Kim most recently and Trini had fun Zack-stories to share about his recent attempts to join a fraternity. Still, it seemed to Trini like they were avoiding an elephant, and it was especially uncomfortable with Kat.

She could talk to Kat about anything. So why not this?

Under the cover of the trees, Trini pulled up all her resolve and-

Was unexpectedly kissed, hard, right on the lips. She gave as good as she took, and neither could say how long they stood on the path, clutching each other so tightly that they felt melded together.

Finally, breathlessness broke them apart. Trini knew she had a silly, giddy smile on her face. Kat wore one, as well.

Any other time, this would have been the moment for a deep talk… a discussion on a relationship, and what it would entail, and…

"Want to come back to my dorm and watch a movie?"

Kat grinned. "Sure."

Hand in hand, they strolled down to the bus stop… only breaking the silence when Trini mused, "You know… I might not actually punish Jason for all his interfering."


End file.
